Lighting Terrors
by Laeedil
Summary: One night, home alone, Bella is brought to tears in the middle of the night. Tears only a mother can brush away. AU Oneshot Bella/Alice implied, but not the focus.


I own nothing in regards to Twilight or the characters within the series

This is a short one shot I had come to me in the last week or so, and its been nagging at me to write and post it. It is an AU in that its a Bella/Alice pairing, but that isn't the focus of this story.

* * *

It had been dark for a long while, and the house had fallen silent as the night went on. A heavy rain had started several hours ago, and it was expected to last through the night and well into tomorrow. Charlie had been called just before dinner was finished, and had to rush out and get back to the station. It was turning out to be one of the worst rain storms in recent years, and already there had been a few accidents and even a few flash floods. From what he said, he would be needing to call in every hand the he could to make sure things didn't get to bad around forks.

So Bella had dinner by herself, making sure to leave a plate aside for Charlie to heat up whenever he managed to get home. She would have called Alice and asked her to come over, but she was out on a hunting trip with the rest of the Cullens.

After getting dinner put away and everything cleaned up, Bella managed to finish off her homework quicker then she thought that it would take, leaving her with nothing to do. She tried to both watch TV and tried to find something to read, but without her girlfriend to keep her company, she knew her problem was the she was lonely.

Thinking of Alice did managed to place a smile on Bella's face as she remembered how she meet the little pixie vampire.

Bella sat and thought for a while, remembering when they first meet in school last Febuary, going out shopping and to the movies as friends. Bella figuring out Alice's secrect, and in turn, the secret that the entire Cullen clan were vampires. But Alice had known that Bella would figure it out on her own that she would be fine with it, due to Alice's visions.

It was also then, after Alice had confermed Bella's discovery, that Alice told Bella they were mates.

The kiss they shared in that moment still left Bella floating when she would think about it.

Since then, Bella had grown to view the Cullens as a second family. Edward, Emmett, and Jasper, each at their own pace, took her on as a little sister. Esme became the mother Bella had always wanted, and Carlisle had nearly equal footing with Charlie in being her father.

The only one that was worrying at the start was with Rosalie. She, for the longest time, had been cold with Bella, and refused to have anything to really do with her. Bella had learned about her past, and the nightmare that had befallen her when she became a vampire, so Bella kept her distance so as not to anger her and cause problems within the Cullen clan.

But in the months since Bella and Alice had been together, Rosaline was warming up to Bella. Esplcally after Rose had been put into a bad mood at school from Jessica and her friends. Rose had walked away so as not to kill the teenagers, but her vampire hearing as able to pick up Bella's defence for her. Moments later, Bella was walking next to Rose, anger plain on her face.

They had beomce friends since.

Bella was pulled out of her thoughts as she looked up at the clock, seeing the time. Figuring that she wouldn't be able to do much else, she would go to bed early, in nothing else, just out of sheer bordom and dream of her Alice.

Bella jumped awake in confusion, sitting up in bed and looked around, trying to figure out just what had woken her up. It was still the middle of the night, and she hear the sheets of rain pounding against her closed bedroom window. She rubbed her face, trying to get her brain to work.

BOOM

And jerked in her bed, fully awake. She looked to the window, her eyes wide. A flash light up her room, followed by another crash as lighting struck somewhere outside.

When it quieted down, Bella had her head clutched within her hands, on her side, and was crying softly.

 _She was five years old, and her mother had taken her shopping and to dinner, and they were rerturning home. She was sitting in the backseat, and asked her mother a question._

 _Her mom looked up into the rearview mirror, a smile on her face, when the inside of the car lite up._

 _The following crash left bells ringing in her ears._

 _Bella had passed out, but came to within a few minutes. The first thing she saw, was her mothers limp body in the front seat._

 _She screamed._

It had taken Bella years to move past it, but the flash of lighting, and the crash of thunder, never failed to put that memory to the front of Bella's mind, forcing her to relive those memories time and time again.

The crash of thunder shook her, and tears began to flow from her eyes.

No one knew, expect for Charlie. Whenever there was a lighting storm like this, she would be screaming at each lighting bolt. Charlie would be there in a flash, holding her as she cried and begged for it to stop.

But he wouldn't be there tonight. Nothing had said this would be a lighting storm. Not the weather reports, and Alice hadn't said anything about the family playing baseball, so its most likely she didn't know ether.

A third crash sounded, and Bella couldn't help but scream and cry out.

Bella was lost in her terror, that she didn't see or hear her cell going off, with Alice on the caller ID

CRASH

"MOMMY!"

* * *

Esme finished off the email, sending the lastest plans for her clients living room as she relaxed into her office chair. She had the house to herself tonight, as Carlisle had been called into the ER due to the storm, and the kids were out hunting for the weekend.

Well, not all of her children, as she was sure Bella was safely tucked away in her home.

Esme smiled, her mind going through memories of her youngest daughter. Sure, they may not be releated through blood or vemon, but Bella WAS her daughter as far as Esme was concerned. Her relationship with Alice was adorible. The way the boys were the older brothers in embrassing and making fun of Bella, until someone threatened her, then it was all busniess.

And when she was with Bella, she knew she had Bella's full attention. Emse didn't know what had happened to her birth mother, but Jasper had told her in private that whenever Esme 'mothered' her, Bella would become just a bit happier.

She was taken from her thoughts as her phone began to ring. She smiled when she saw it was Alice. She flipped it opened, "Hello Alice, are you..."

"Esme, you have to get to Bella, she not anwsering her Phone!"

That brought Esme up fully in her chair, "is something wrong?"

"I don't know," cried Alice, panic in her voice. "I just see her crying and screaming all night. I'm on my way, but I'm to far away, and she needs help, NOW!"

The phone was dropped and forgotten as Esme blurred out of the door and didn't stop as she ran full bore out of the house.

Her daughter was in pain.

She didn't register the rain, or the lighting, only that her youngest was in trouble and needed her. And that was enough to push her to run faster.

She made it to Bella's house in record time, stopping long enough to look over the house. Her eyes raked the house, seeing no damage to the exterior, and rain made it nearly impossible to pick up the scent of anything out of the ordinary.

But her hearing picked up Bella's crying, and when the thunder struck, she screamed.

Esme was at Bellas window in a flash, openning it smoothly as Bella didn't lock it, and slipped inside.

Esme's eyes easy found her daughter laying in her bed, hands digging into her hair as she laid in the fetal position on her bed. And she was knocked back on her heels, as Esme could clearly smell the fear rolling off of her daughter.

The thunder struck again, louder then before, and Bella screamed at the top of her lungs in pure unbrildel terror.

She screamed for her mother.

Esme didn't remember moving, but Bella was now cluched in her arms. Bella's eyes didn't open, but somewhere deep within register she was now being held by someone, and wrapped her arms around the person holding her, clutching the person in a death grip. Esme's arms were around her, holding her firmly as she laid her head onto Bella's.

"Its ok Bella," she whispered, hoping that Bella heard her. She began whisper words of comfort into Bella's ear, and rubbing her back gently. Everytime thunder struck, Bella would scream, trying to pull Esme closer into her. And Esme was her rock, allowing her to cry while holding her tightly, telling her she was ok.

Time went on, but it was a good hour before the lighting and thunder began to move away and quiet. During that time, Bella was able to slowly calm down, her tears and fear easing as the storm began to move away.

Once she was calmed down enough, she manage to realize who was holding her, but Bella at this moment, didn't care.

"Esme," she said softly, he throat being sore, "thank you."

Esme continued to rub her back, and made no showing of moving, and bella was fine with that. "It alright," she said, "I'm glad I could help."

Bella heard the slightest of question in Esme's voice, and nodded. In her tired mind, she told Esme about her mothers death, and how this happened everytime there was a lighting storm.

"But," Esme said in confusion, "you were fine when you went to watch us play baseball."

Bella nodded, "it was daytime though, the flash aren't as bright as night time."

Esme nodded. After a few moments, she asked about Charlie.

"He got called in," Bella replied tiredly.

Esme nodded again, which made sense since Carlisle was called into the hospital as well.

Bella was slowly losing her battle with sleep, as it was still 3 am according to the clock, and she didn't even realize saying it.

"Thank you, Mom."

* * *

Esme held her daughter as she slept calmly in her arms, that blanket wrapped over her, and she had the smallest of smiles on her face as she looked at Bella's sleeping face.

She heard a phone going off, and looked over to see Bella's cell phone ringing, and Charlie was on the caller ID. She figured he was calling to check up on Bella, knowing what she would be going through.

So Esme anwsered it.

"Bella, are you ok, I'm leaving now, Rogers can..."

"Its ok Chief Swan," replied Esme, stopping him dead in his tracks."

"Mrs. Cullen?"

"She's sleeping fine"

"I...I don't..."

Esme smiled, lying smoothly, "Bella had told Alice about her mother, who had then relayed it to me one night. When Carlisle was called into the ER, the thunder began at our house. Knowing what I did, and with Carlisle having been called I assumed you would have been as well. So I came here as fast as I could. And it was a good thing I did to, the poor thing was crying her eyes out."

"Esme...thank you."

Esme smiled as she looked tenderly to Bella, "Chief Swan, I would do anything for my daughter."

* * *

So please, what did you think, reviews are always welcome.


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